The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for consistently and correctly placing center marks for embroidery on an article and particularly relates to apparatus and methods for locating embroidery center marks on garments using standardized garment sizes or a custom size.
As well known in the embroidery industry, the portion of the article to be embroidered is typically placed within a matched pair of rings forming an embroidery hoop. While the matched embroidery rings can be a number of different sizes and shapes, the smaller or inner ring typically fits snugly inside the larger or outer ring with the material of the article pinched between the rings and stretched and maintained taut across the rings. Embroidery hoops conventionally ensure that the area of the article to be embroidered is stretched tightly between the hoop rings to ensure that the embroidery is even and not distorted.
Before the article can be embroidered in the area within the matched rings, and indeed before the rings can be applied to the article, the center of the embroidery must be identified and marked on the article, e.g., a garment. Once the center mark for the embroidery is identified, a number of different tools are conventionally used to align the matched rings such that the resulting embroidery is straight and not canted or angled or positioned above, below or to the right or left of the desired position.
For articles, particularly garments of various sizes, the problem of identifying the center mark for locating the embroidery is compounded by the difference in sizes. However, garments are typically provided in standard sizes. For example, on T-shirts, collared shirts, jackets or the like which are typically embroidered along the left or right chest portion of the garment, men""s sizes may range, for example, between small, medium, large and extra large. Similarly, women""s sizes may likewise be standardized in small, medium, large and extra large, with those predetermined sizes for each gender being generally different from one another. Thus, given a garment of a particular size, a center mark for the embroidery must first be determined. If a number of garments of the same or different sizes are to be embroidered, similar center marks for the embroidery for each garment are required. Heretofore, this has meant repeating the same process of identifying the center mark for each garment. Further, once the center mark for a garment is identified and marked on the garment, there is also the additional problem of aligning the embroidery with the garment where alignment tools are not utilized.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided apparatus and methods for accurately and consistently locating a center mark on articles, e.g., garments to be embroidered and particularly for locating a center mark on garments folded along a vertical centerline for placement of the embroidery in the chest area of the garments. Particularly, a tool is provided comprised of a planar body having orthogonally-related legs having a first pair of orthogonally-related linear edges terminating at an intersection point along an outside edge of the tool. The legs of the tool include index markings along their linear edges, including indicia identifying a plurality of corresponding preestablished garment sizes. For example, both men""s and women""s sizes, small, medium, large and extra large, may be indicated along each of the outside edges of the tool at predetermined distances from the intersection point of those edges. With a garment folded along a vertical centerline, alignment of the indicia identifying a common selected size along the edges with the garment centerline and a garment shoulder portion, respectively, the location of the embroiderer""s center mark on the garment is identified at the intersection of the outside linear edges. For example, when embroidering a man""s medium T-shirt, the standard indicia identifying a man""s medium size along a horizontal leg of the tool is aligned with the vertical centerline of the garment. An identical indicia along the vertical leg of the tool is aligned with the shoulder of the folded garment. The intersection of the edges identifies the center mark for the embroidery and can be placed on the garment. It will be appreciated that additional garments of the same size or different sizes can be marked by placement of the tool on each of the garments in similar fashion. Preferably, the intersection of the outside edges of the tool has a concave arcuate cutout which facilitates marking on the underlying garment.
With the center mark identified on the garment, various embroiderer""s tools may be used without making alignment marks on the garment. However, if such tools are not used, alignment marks can be applied using the tool of the present invention. For example, after locating the center mark on the garment, a right angularly related end edge of the horizontal leg of the tool can be aligned with the vertical center line of the garment and with the previously identified center mark. A horizontal line is then scribed along the garment using the outside edge of the tool as a guide. By shifting the tool horizontally along the garment and aligning the inside corner of the orthogonally-related legs of the tool with the center mark and the horizontal line, a vertical line may be scribed on the garment using the inside vertical edge of the vertically extending leg of the tool. The two orthogonally-related lines scribed on the garment provide the necessary marks for aligning the hoop grid without the use of ancillary tools.
It will also be appreciated that custom embroidery center mark placement may also be accomplished with the tool hereof. Using a previously embroidered article that is placed correctly for an individual, the tool may be located on the article with the intersection or corner point of the tool located on the center of the embroidery. By marking the intersection of the vertical leg with the upper edge of the article, e.g., a garment shoulder fold, on the vertical leg and marking the intersection of the horizontal leg with the vertical edge of the article, e.g., the folded centerline of the garment, on the horizontal leg, the custom placement of center marks for embroidering on additional articles, e.g., garments, may be accomplished.
In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a tool for locating a center mark on garments folded along a vertical centerline for placement of embroidery on the garments, comprising a planar body having a first pair of orthogonally-extending linear edges terminating at an intersection point, index markings on the body spaced one from the other along and adjacent each of the linear edges, the body being flat along one side for placement on the garment in generally coplanar relation with the garment, the index markings including indicia identifying a plurality of corresponding preestablished garment sizes along the linear extending edges, respectively, whereby alignment of indicia identifying common selected sizes along the edges with the garment centerline and a garment shoulder portion, respectively, enables location of an embroiderer""s center mark on the garment at the intersection of the linear edges.
In a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a method of locating an embroiderer""s center mark on a garment folded along a vertical centerline using a tool having a planar body, a first pair of orthogonally-extending linear edges terminating at an intersection point and indicia identifying a plurality of corresponding preestablished garment sizes along each of the linear edges, comprising the steps of placing the body on the folded garment with the indicia identifying a common selected garment size in alignment with the garment centerline and shoulder portion of the garment, respectively, and marking the garment at the location of the intersection of the edges thereby identifying the center mark location for placement of embroidery on the garment.
In a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a method of marking a tool having first and second orthogonally-extending edges intersecting at a corner using a previously embroidered garment as a guide for identifying center marks for embroidering one or more additional garments, comprising the steps of folding the embroidered garment along a vertical centerline thereof, overlaying the tool on the embroidered garment with the corner of the tool overlaid on a center of the embroidery of the embroidered garment and marking the tool along the edges thereof at locations in alignment with the vertical centerline and a shoulder portion, respectively, of the embroidered garment thereby providing a pair of markings on the tool which, together with the corner of the tool, provide reference marks for identifying embroidery center marks on the one or more additional garments.